


The Nannying Job

by silverstaurolite



Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: I haven't decided, John is bored, Mystery, Not Canon Compliant, Sherlock is bored, maybe OFC/Sherlock
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-07-07
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:53:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,944
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25133452
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/silverstaurolite/pseuds/silverstaurolite
Summary: When Violet Hunter's new job is shrouded in mystery, she goes to John and Sherlock for help. As she was their first client in weeks, they eagerly agreed to help the poor American. The three of them will have to work together to uncover the truth of one family's drama.





	1. Boredom

London has been unbearably dull for too long. Fewer and fewer crimes were being committed, and any that were could be handled by Scotland Yard without any input from the infamous Sherlock Holmes. For the past three weeks, Sherlock had nothing to distract him from the mundanity of everyday life. In short, he was bored, which drove him insane. Violin or research both couldn’t distract his mind for long, and he wished certain drugs weren't so ‘illegal’.

Even John disliked the silence. Although he appreciated being able to actually follow his work schedule, he missed the excitement of the chase and writing about it in his blog. On his days off, Sherlock stuck him with the job of screening potential clients of theirs. That particular Monday saw a young, very nervous woman arrive at their flat looking for advice. If the sight of Sherlock mostly undressed and laying on the couch shocked her, she chose not to show it. 

“Come on in,” John said, ushering her over to his own chair, glaring at Sherlock’s immobile frame. “Would you like some tea?”

“Oh, no thank you,” she replied, settling into the seat with her small purse clutched in her lap. Her American accent intrigued Sherlock and he imperceptibly shifted in order to focus on her voice.

With quick and precise speech, she introduced herself as Violet Hunter. New to the city, she had troubles finding a job that could support her after finally graduating from a local university. Relaying her events to the pair of men in the room, she swapped between looking down at her lap and glancing into John’s comforting eyes. A week ago, a wealthy family offered her a job as a nanny that paid three times the usual salary in the area. On top of the salary, the job included room and board, which struck Violet as exceedingly generous. However, the circumstances and requirements were unique. The family looking to hire listed a very specific dress code for all viable employees. Violet needed to chop off most of her lengthy amber hair and needed to wear an electric blue dress during the mornings, and only in the mornings. Her employer seemed very amicable, but the unusual requirements made the job less than ideal.

At first she turned down the well paying job, inducing feelings of anger from the family she was supposed to nanny for. Within days of turning down the job, all of her other pending applications to other jobs were rejected leaving her only one option: the nannying position. After receiving a letter from the employer asking her to rethink her decision with a slight raise, she decided to take the job pending consultation with Holmes and Watson.

Once she finished going over the details of her situation, Sherlock sat up with one fluid motion and stared directly into Violet’s wide eyes. His scrutiny made her uncomfortable but she refused to show it; after all, she was there to get help. He noticed the bags under her eyes that indicated a disrupted sleep pattern, probably due to stress with her present situation. He noticed fingernails with a rough edge, which had obviously been picked at in her fits of anxiety. He noticed her blazer and floral dress were spotted with two different cats’ hair, one black and another soft white, both of which had been cradled in her arms. Overall, he noticed the potential for a distraction from his boring daily routine.

To John’s dismay, he suggested Violet take the job, even considering the mysterious circumstances involved. To reassure the worried woman, he advised her to be aware of her surroundings at all times and contact them if anything worrisome happened. Watson made sure to emphasise his availability for any calls from Violet if she ever felt concern for her own safety, even if that concern was unfounded. Feeling grateful to have someone she could trust, she bade farewell and hurried off to cut her hair and invest in multiple blue dresses.

Soon after her departure, Sherlock again fell into his personal pit of despair and hopelessness. Violet was only there for about an hour, quickly leaving him without a distraction. At least, he had confidence that further communication with Violet was inevitable. Although he usually kept himself out of family drama, especially considering the disaster he faced with every family event, it was significantly better than doing nothing. Not wanting to bother John with excessive violin playing, he decided to attempt a new chemical experiment focusing on the comparative odors between different thiol reactions to see if the starting reagents could be identified by the reaction smell. Unfortunately, the odors disturbed John more than any violin playing could.


	2. The Job

Around a week after meeting with Violet Hunter, John received a phone call asking if he and Sherlock would meet her at the Black Swan Hotel in Winchester. She made the call in secret and late at night, so the pair had to wait until the next day to depart from the city. 

“What a beautiful day,” John remarked, glancing at the country scenery. Not enough green is found in the center of London, at least to John’s taste. “Don’t you agree?” 

He knew the pointless conversation would only irritate his companion, but he couldn’t help but enjoy Sherlock’s reactions to his efforts. He only received a harsh scoff and a quick annoyed glance in response. On his own, he focused on the small folder in his mind palace that contained the details of Miss Hunter’s case. All he had was her word on the positions requirements along with a profile of her. His impatience to meet her revealed itself with every twitch of his hands and every bounce of his leg in the near empty train car.

As the train slowed down, Sherlock froze completely, only focusing on his surroundings. Countryside gave way to aging buildings that had seen years of use and repair. Regardless of the dated architecture, the clean area seemed welcoming in the morning light. When the train stopped, Sherlock was the first person out of his seat, soon followed by John. This early, the streets were mostly empty except for the small crowd exiting from the train station. 

Sherlock’s long legs quickly carried him to the small hotel right next to the train station. He loudly burst through the front door, startling the sleepy receptionist at the front desk. Violet sat by the unlit fireplace, clearly waiting for her pair of mystery solvers to arrive. Without a word, she led them up to the room she had rented to be sure they were far away from prying eyes.

“I will have to tell you everything quickly as I don’t have much time,” Violet started before indulging the pair with her misadventure, telling every detail about her new, however temporary life.

“Every member of the family is as strange as the next. The mother refuses to talk or even make eye contact with me. Every morning she leaves a signed note on my door, but the contents are completely illegible and tear-soaked.” At that moment, she grabbed a bundle of small notes from her pocket and handed them to Sherlock. He scanned over them as Violet continued her tale. 

“The father acted just as friendly as he appeared in my interviews, but he started to show a dangerous edge by my second morning. Although he never overtly threatened me, any moment I didn’t act like a ‘perfect lady’, he would glare at me while clenching his fists. My job truly revolved around the child, a very angry 10-year-old boy. I have caught him torturing countless small animals, always with a cheerful smile on his face. They also have a daughter, Alice, who moved to America for college and cut off all contact with her family.

“Other than myself, they employ two other live-in staff. Mr.Toller is a raging alcoholic who doesn’t know when he’s had enough. He’s the gardener, though I’ve never seen him actually do his job. Mrs.Toller constantly has a sour expression on her face and berates her husband every chance she gets. She both cooks for the family and cleans the house. The family also owns a pair of mean mastiffs that get released at night and attack anyone available, other than Mr.Toller.

“On my first day, I took my time to get ready in my new blue dress. As I put it on, I noticed a man watching from the window. Of course, I screamed, which made the man run away into the nearby woods. I was going to call the police, but the father convinced me that it wasn’t worth it. Every day, I wore the blue dress and every day that man showed up. Eventually, I just got used to it.

“I spent most of my time with the young boy. On top of watching him, my duties included making sure he kept up to date with his studies. Any time I tried to enforce any rules, he would laugh in my face and instead try to play games. He’s never been violent towards me, but sometimes I receive ‘gifts’ of mutilated animals. I asked the parents for help, but I only got the ‘boys will be boys’ response, which pissed me off. I decided to restart my job search without telling them, as they would definitely sabotage any options I got.

“As you could expect, curiosity took hold of me the moment I had time to myself. During my orientation, I had a tour of the house where Mrs. Toller informed me of the history of the house. I noticed that one section of the house was entirely deserted but, after asking her about it, she warned that the section was unsafe to be in. After seeing the father run out of there one day, I knew that would be the first place to go. Taking Mr. Toller’s key, as he was passed out drunk in the garden shed, I inspected the rooms. A small dusty hallway led to a thick, metal door not original to the house. I heard movement coming from behind the locked door and tried to talk to whoever was there. However, sounds from the main part of the house spooked me and I ran straight back to my room.

“Unfortunately, I ran into my employer on the way out. He threatened me to never go there again, or be thrown to the mastiffs. Terrified, I called you so you guys could help me figure out what’s going on.”

Sherlock pursed his lips together as he thought about the case. The notes from the mother had long been handed off to John so he could try to make sense of the contents within. Although the information he had was biased, as it came directly from Violet’s account, he felt he could trust the information he had. Mulling over the puzzle pieces in his mind, he came to one conclusion.

“Alice is not in America as your employers would like you to believe. She is locked behind that metal door in the house. You have been hired as a replacement.”

Violet was not overly surprised to hear his conclusion. She suspected it, but she couldn’t even begin to explain it.

“Why?” she asked the consulting detective. “What’s the point in replacing someone who isn’t gone?” 

Sherlock refused to answer without more evidence, so the group agreed to meet at the home’s entrance that evening at seven. The family would be out to watch a movie and the two other staff left to visit their daughter in London, leaving the house open for investigation.


End file.
